


a painting dipped in water

by dandelionlighters



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:21:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,522
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25026892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dandelionlighters/pseuds/dandelionlighters
Summary: After 2x16, Hope gets stuck in Josie’s head.—Josie felt her the second she woke up.It was gentle, barely there like the light breeze of a wind one could feel but not see. Subtle.She could feel Hope Mikaelson sliding into her thoughts, and she did not know quite how, and years later she would still not be able to describe it correctly, but it was nothing like the dark magic that had taken over her for so long.
Relationships: Hope Mikaelson/Josie Saltzman
Comments: 30
Kudos: 304





	a painting dipped in water

**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoy

Josie felt her the second she woke up. 

It was gentle, barely there like the light breeze of a wind one could feel but not see. _Subtle_. 

She could feel Hope Mikaelson sliding into her thoughts, and she did not know quite how, and years later she would still not be able to describe it correctly, but it was nothing like the dark magic that had taken over her for so long. 

This was new. 

Different. 

_Hope?_ She didn’t speak, didn’t even open her mouth. Still, her thought was answered.

_Josie_. She could hear the word in her head as if someone was standing behind her and whispering it into her ear. It made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on edge, it made a shiver run down her spine.

What was Hope doing in her head? 

_You left me_ , the voice came again. No. Not the voice. Hope. Yet, there was no anger or hate to her words. The tribrid sounded almost amused, as if she had already gotten used to this. Whatever _this_ was. 

Josie was terrified to feel a rueful smirk stretch across her lips that wasn’t her own. 

_Did I?_ The siphoner thought, with no small amount of panic. Hope nodded—Josie nodded?—and chuckled. 

How could she find this funny? 

_It’s not_ , Hope told her, but she laughed all the same. _You need to relax._

Scowling, Josie rose from the bed she couldn’t remember ever laying down on in the first place, and stepped into the nearby bathroom. 

She was surprised to find that her feet felt lighter, as if Hope’s natural grace had somehow become a part of her, and when she came face to face with the mirror above the sink, her lips—Hope’s lips?—parted in surprise. 

Josie was in her reflection, as expected. Pale skin tinged with color, remnants of the darker part of her, surely. Warm, brown eyes. Brown hair. A full, pouty mouth. A soft jawline. 

But Hope was in there, _too_. 

Josie’s eyes flashed with blue, and then gold, and the lashes of them grew longer. Brown hair fell into waves of deep auburn, soft and lengthy. Her full lips thinned somewhat, though the cut of her jaw became sharper, but when Josie blinked the changes all disappeared. 

When she blinked again, they all came back. 

It was Hope that reached a hand up to her hair, but it was Josie that felt the strands beneath the pads of her fingers. It was Hope’s eyes that dilated in recognition, Josie’s throat that bobbed with nerves. 

_ I don’t want you to get hurt. _

_ Josie, I’m not going to leave you behind.  _

_ I was afraid of being strong. _

_ Tell yourself a different story.  _

Everything came in fragments, suddenly and without forgiveness, and Josie gasped, unable to take it all in at once. 

How could she have forgotten about everything? 

But no. She couldn’t have. That wasn’t possible. 

This isn’t real, she denied. But Hope shook her head and the siphoner was proven wrong as her chin was forced left and right. 

_It is_ , Hope told her. _Go find Ric—your dad._

Josie knew then that Hope was right. The tribrid was stuck in her subconscious. For whatever reason, banishing Dark Josie had not been enough to free Hope as well. 

Mind swarming and chest caving in on itself, Josie stumbled back against the wall, breathless, searching wildly for something solid and warm against her skin. 

But the wall was cold and unrelenting and she found herself more chilled than she had been before. 

_Oh, god_ , she thought. How could she have screwed Hope over after everything the tribrid had done for _her_? 

Without noticing, Josie started to siphon magic from the wall and the ceiling began to shake. 

Hope noticed. 

_I’m okay,_ she tried to reach the other girl, her voice soothing against the walls of Josie’s mind, which seemed to be closing in around their collective conscious. _We’re okay, Jo_. 

The ceiling slowly settled, and then stopped shaking altogether. Yet, Josie still felt like her skin had been scrubbed raw with magic, and while it usually made her feel powerful, it only left her feeling weak and tired this time. 

Siphoning wasn’t as freeing as it used to be, and one could only take so much before they began to get nothing out of it at all. 

_Now go find your dad._ A pause. _Go find_ me _._

Josie somehow found the strength to nod, but hesitated all the same. She stopped in front of the door. _Wait_. 

She received no answer. It became so silent that Josie feared she had lost Hope forever, but she still felt her presence in her mind, like a painting dipped in water, blurred at the edges but there, there, there. 

Hold on. Why was she making painting metaphors? Crap. This must have been a side-effect of— 

Of _Hope_. 

_What’s wrong?_ The tribrid’s voice came again, at last, and Josie heard it as if for the first time. The siphoner backed away from the door and towards her dresser. 

_I need to do something first,_ she thought back, her heart pounding, or maybe that was Hope’s? She couldn’t tell. _Something I should have done before. Before I..._

She trailed off, unable to finish. But was it possible, for a thought to just _dissolve_ , to just fade away? No. The answer was—

It wasn’t. Hope had heard the unspoken words, she had heard them long before Josie consciously uttered them. 

_You didn’t know what would happen_ , Hope said, as much as a person could talk without ever speaking. _You didn’t know..._

It seemed that her words lost themselves in the depth of Josie’s mind, too, but not truly. The siphoner inhaled sharply with the implication—something miserable and thick that got stuck in her throat and nearly made her double-over to expel it. 

_ What are you doing?  _

Josie hadn’t even realized that she had moved. She hadn’t even realized that she was now standing in front of the ceramic piggy bank on her dresser. 

_Hey, look._ Hope laughed, that same amused tone, in her head. _It’s your friend_. 

_Shut up,_ was Josie’s reply. Her hand shot out to open the bottom of the piggy bank, allowing a single, gold coin to fall out. It bounced against the wood of the dresser and almost fell to the floor, but Josie’s nimble fingers caught it in a flash. 

Or, rather, Hope’s nimble fingers.

_Careful_ , she teased, and Josie had the thought that she needed to get the other girl out of her brain as soon as possible. Of course, Hope heard it, and sent an unphysical, offended look back. 

Josie didn’t deign that with a reply and simply wrapped her palms around the coin, muttering a spell that warmed it red like molten lava. Within seconds, the color gave way back to gold and Josie released her tight grip on the coin. 

She instantly felt relieved, like a weight had been lifted off of her chest. 

_I...what happened?_ Hope’s voice was fuzzy again. _What did you do?_

Josie didn’t answer, suddenly feeling nervous. Would Hope be disappointed in her if she told the tribrid? Would she be absolutely sick to her stomach? Would she think her selfish? 

_ Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie. Josie.  _

_I siphoned my magic away,_ she said finally, if only to get Hope to stop. Somehow, the words came out surprisingly easily for Josie, almost like they never had before. 

What had she been so afraid of in the first place? 

_ Josie...  _

_I’ll be fine_ , the siphoner (or not, at least not anymore) promised. _Don’t worry._

Hope shook her head without moving an inch. _That’s not possible. Not with you._

Josie tried not to blush, but the red bled into her cheeks all the same. God. She needed to stop before Hope figured her out. Figured _everything_ out. 

_Really, don’t,_ she tried again. What more was there to say? So much, maybe. 

_ Hey, is that...?  _

Josie paused, turning her head to where Hope wanted it to go. Her eyes caught a glimpse of something shiny yet impossibly dull, and her mouth ran dry as the talisman Hope had given her for her sixteenth birthday stared back at her. 

_ Yes.  _

It was hanging on a jewelry stand on her dresser with other necklaces, but the talisman was obviously the nicest piece among its companions. 

_You haven’t worn it in a while._ Hope’s voice was almost absentminded, almost casual, like she was simply making an observation or pointing out that the weather was nice. 

Josie nodded numbly—not knowing what Hope wanted her to say. Silence filled the room and dragged on until Hope decided to spare the brunette and break it. 

_We should go_ , Hope thought suddenly, out of nowhere, voice so soft and loud that Josie didn’t know if she had truly heard it or if it had simply deafened her ears instead. _Ric’s probably waiting._

_Okay_. Josie sighed, walking to the door and opening it. _Can you please stop calling my dad that in my own head?_

_Sorry_. Hope’s reply was sheepish. There was a small pause as Josie started to wander the hallways. _But, to be fair, I’ve only done it twice._

_Fine_. Josie rolled her eyes inwardly, smiling a little. _I forgive you._

And then: 

_ Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric— _

_ STOP. _

_ Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric. Ric— _

“Well, well, well...” A familiar voice turned Josie to stone and she swallowed down something like ice in her throat, her heart freezing over. Hope twisted her body around for the fearful girl, coming eye-to-eye with Alyssa Chang. She seemed very, _very_ mad. “If it isn’t the homicidal, twisted, little psychopath.” 

_Who is she calling little? You’re, like, two feet taller than her._ Hope scoffed. _Kick her ass._

_I can’t do that._ Josie found her advice very unhelpful. 

_ Why not?  _

_You’re an idiot,_ Josie hissed. _I don’t have my magic._

Alyssa didn’t seem to notice the pair’s silent conversation. She only continued to glare at the brunette, an expression so deadly that it made Josie’s stomach turn with poison. 

“Alyssa, _hey_ ,” Josie dragged out the word nervously, shoving down the urge to bite her nails down to their beds. “I was just looking for you!” 

“Oh, really?” 

“Yeah,” Josie said, nodding her head along, “I wanted to make sure I apologized to everyone for anything I may have done when I wasn’t myself...” 

“You killed me,” the other witch deadpanned. Josie’s heart caught in her throat. 

Oh, God. Her eyes widened. She almost bent over, feeling suddenly, unexplainably nauseous. 

But there was an easy explanation. She had killed Alyssa.

She had killed—

Oh, God. Oh, God. God. God. 

_ Tell me it isn’t true.  _

_ Josie— _

_ Tell me.  _

_ I... _

Panic clawed at her lungs and stole her breath, and parting her lips and closing them over and over again brought her no air, or oxygen, nor any relief at all. 

Alyssa, who she had known since she was eight? Alyssa, with her innocent, little stuffed animal that Josie knew she still slept with at night? 

What had Alyssa named it, again? 

Mr. Pinkie? 

Or was it Mrs. Pinkie? 

Why couldn’t Josie remember? She should know, she should know. 

It seemed so trivial, so inconsequential now, but Josie couldn’t help torturing herself over the smaller details. What was the name? Why couldn’t she remember? Did she not know Alyssa at all? 

Is that why she had killed her? How could she have just done that? How could she have allowed herself to do that? 

No. No. God, no. How—

_Mr. Wrinkles_ , a voice provided in her head. It soothed her at once, and Josie reminded herself that this voice belonged to a person and that this person was Hope. 

_This is not your burden to carry, Josie. You have already carried too much_. The words came like a breath of fresh air to her aching lungs, and she slowly began to remember what it was to breathe again. _What happened was not your fault._

_It is_ , Josie admitted silently. _I killed her._

_Focus, Josie._ Hope snapped her out of it. _She’s coming closer._

“Are you talking to your evil twin again?” Alyssa tilted her head contemplatively. “Well, actually, you already have Sleeping Blondie, so I guess that would make her your evil- _er_ twin...” 

Josie didn’t entirely understand the reference to Lizzie, so she just shook her head and started to apologize. 

“I’m s-so sorry, Alyssa, I’m so sorry, you have to believe me—“ 

Josie’s back hit the wall before she could even blink, but she had a sneaking suspicion that Hope had long seen it coming. 

_ Told you.  _

Not _ helping.  _

Alyssa stalked up to her, that same evil smirk on her face that Josie had seen time and time again but had never been scared of until now. 

The witch then stretched her hand out in front of her, closing in on Josie with alarming speed. The brunette was terrified to feel the phantom grip of fingers around her neck. 

Crap. Alyssa was going to choke her without even touching her. 

_Come on, Josie, defend yourself!_ Hope yelled, urgent and...almost frantic. 

_I can’t_. Josie squirmed and wiggled her arms and legs, but found that she ultimately couldn’t move. She was trapped. 

_Siphon from me_ , Hope told her, but Josie knew that she wouldn’t be able to. She had stored her siphon power away in that stupid coin. 

_Yes, you can_. The words were almost growled, and if Alyssa wasn’t currently strangling her, Josie would have thought that Hope was the one taking her breath away. 

_ How?  _

Josie gasped for air, head pounding for oxygen. 

_ Let me.  _

It came to her slowly and then all at once. It flowed through her veins and set flames across her skin, and—

Well, Josie had always loved fire. 

Yet, she felt too hot, like her blood was boiling, like her lungs were scorching, but it was addicting in the same way a child couldn’t resist playing with the stove in spite of every single time they got burned. 

Josie had siphoned from Hope before, but it had never been quite like this. Like—like she never wanted to feel anything else ever again, like she was suddenly perfectly fine with Hope being in her head forever, like she might _die_ if this was the last time she ever got to experience this. 

_What is this?_ She sounded too reverent, almost like someone who had never known magic in the first place, but Josie couldn’t bring herself to care. 

The invisible hold Alyssa had on her soon vanished completely and suddenly—

The tables were turned, with the other witch flying back to the farthest wall and sticking there like glue. 

_ Magic of your own.  _

_It feels..._ Josie couldn’t even begin to find the right words. Amazing. Exhilarating. Thrilling.

_I know,_ Hope finished for her. 

**Author's Note:**

> i think i liked my other one-shot better than this one but whatever, thanks for reading :)


End file.
